Bachman’s business a (cheese) cake walk

Friday

Dec 21, 2012 at 11:25 AMDec 21, 2012 at 11:30 AM

Luke Smucker

When 25-year-old Lexington native Lindsay Bachman, owner of That’s So Sweet Cheesecake Bakery, opened up shop at 429 W. Main St. in Lexington on April 18, she had already discovered a niche market which was so sought after in the area that she almost instantly sold out of cheesecakes. “When we opened I was here working by myself for 10 days with my mom who helped, but wouldn’t let me pay her,” said Bachman. “We were here 15 or 16 hours a day for 10 days straight because as soon as I opened, I was selling out. I opened at 7 a.m. on a Wednesday morning, from 7:10 a.m. to 5 p.m. when I closed, traffic was constant.”Usually with a new business, customers can expect to go into the store, maybe purchase an item or two and be on their way. On the contrary, Bachman said she is so busy this holiday season, she is literally having to turn away customers in order to find time to sleep at night.“We either have to say ‘no’ at this point, or go insane and make cheesecakes with absolutely no sleep,” said Bachman. “I love to work hard, but there comes a time when if I start feeling like I am not sleeping and I have been here for 16 or 17 hours for five days in a row, my product is going to start to show that and I would rather say ‘no’ than give somebody something that wasn’t my best quality.” The story of Bachman’s success is the story of a young woman who, on a whim, discovered she could make a cheesecake. The idea came to her after some co-workers at her previous job were enticing her to bring a treat into work during November of 2010. Her mother was never known for making cheesecakes and in fact, Bachman recalls she didn’t even have all of the right ingredients to make a cheesecake anywhere near the quality she produces today.“I did it, not ever thinking it would turn into anything,” said Bachman. “But I did it and word got around. I made six cheesecakes that Thanksgiving and then 25 at Christmas that year. Keep in mind these were 25 full-sized 9’’ cheesecakes. That’s all I had the ability to do in my kitchen at home.”To describe her home kitchen at that time, Bachman said it was nestled into a small old house, an oven, a mixer and a fridge. Her counter space was all split up and she guessed it totaled about three feet. After Christmas, Bachman recalls she was having fun making the cakes, but still considered it just a hobby to make a little cash on the side. The following spring and summer however, she started experimenting with other flavors of cheesecake. She tweaked the recipe, which she said is not a family recipe and as her product’s notoriety started to grow, Bachman realized she had something a little bigger than a hobby on her hands.“I thought, ‘I’ve got a business here and if I am going to continue, I might as well see how far I can take this.’” said Bachman. “Nobody told me not to do this. Some people may have even thought it wasn’t the greatest idea, but what many people didn’t know, is that when I signed the lease, I already had 15 weddings booked to get me through the first six months.”Even before the bakery was open for business, Bachman had kept up with a Facebook page for her cheesecakes. After signing the lease for the business space in January of 2012, she received a message from Sarah Kelley, a culinary gradate from Kendall College, Chicago, who wondered if Bachman would need help with the baking. At the time, Bachman said things were so up in the air, she wasn’t sure that she could staff someone else. However, she kept Kelley’s information on file and 10 days later, she was hired as a full-time employee.“We hit it off right away,” said Bachman. “We didn’t know each other at first, but I knew this was what she went to school for and I knew I could give her some responsibility. That was April 26, and she has worked 30-50 hours every week ever since. To know that I can give myself a job and on top of it give somebody else a job is huge to me, especially these days.”The inside of the shop was literally built by Bachman’s husband Pete Bachman, a self-employed carpenter in Lexington. Bachman said her husband’s work schedule really made the transition into the building much easier. She was looking forward to having the bakery business space for a number of reasons. One of the biggest was that she personally didn’t feel productive working from home. “I got married in October 2011, and with this shop, I got my home back. I was honestly a little scared to open a store like this,” said Bachman. “My husband Pete was the one that said, ‘Our home is constantly a mess, why don’t you call about the space and see what they want for it.’ So I did and I signed the lease in January and opened in April, so it worked out well.”While she sold her cheesecakes from home, they were mostly bought by friends and family. Now, Bachman said she goes entire days on end without seeing a single person she knows. On Dec. 19, Bachman said she had somebody driving over from Peoria to pick up some of her mini cheesecakes and after she finished that order, she would soon have to start on an order from Chicago for 20 of her 9’’ cheesecakes. The bakery has delivered as far as Galesburg, places around Livingston County, as well as Bloomington. “I’m a talker and I love to see where people are from — that part is fun for me,” said Bachman. “I think I have found a niche market because a lot of bakeries make cakes and cupcakes, but you have to drive to Chicago to the Cheesecake Factory to get a good cheesecake. I try to be as accommodating as possible, I try to always do my best to make customers happy and that can’t hurt either.”Made in more than 15 unique flavors, her most popular treats are the small cheesecakes she calls “minis.” She said they have become popular because customers can choose an assortment of flavors and not have to commit to one. The minis are sold $2 each or three for $5. Likewise, a dozen of the mini cheesecakes sell for $20. She also makes 6’’ and 9’’ cheesecakes by order only. She said they are by order only because she can’t risk it not selling. “Granted,” she said. “Around this time it probably would sell, but also around this time we are so busy with special orders that we can’t keep up with that much for the store. We try to have the best assortment of product on hand here in the store. However we have sold out in the past, we try to avoid it, but it has happened.”